Dear [NAME],
This Día de Muertos, our partners at the Solidarity Organizing Initiative are asking people across the country to do something simple and powerful: wear a flower, build an altar, and say the names of those killed by immigration enforcement and those who died in ICE custody this year.
In 2025, ICE reported 33 deaths in custody — the highest in more than two decades. At least 27 more people have died in detention so far in 2026, in addition to four people killed by so-called immigration enforcement. Each of them had a name. Each of them had people who loved them. This administration is actively trying to erase their stories. We refuse to let that happen.
Día de Muertos teaches us that a person dies twice: once when they leave this world, and again when no one says their name. The ofrenda — the altar built with photos, candles, and marigolds — exists so the second death never comes.
Here is what we are asking you to do:
- Wear a flower now through November 2. When people ask why, tell them: you are remembering those killed by immigration enforcement, leading up to Día de Muertos.
- Build an altar the weekend of October 30 through November 2. Print names and photographs, light a candle, lay out marigolds. It can be as simple as a windowsill or a front stoop.
- Share flowers with others — at work, in your neighborhood, wherever people gather. Hand someone a flower and say: “I’m doing this in memory of those who died in ICE custody this year. Would you wear it until Día de Muertos?”
- Sign the Solidarity Pledge and invite others to join.
We have materials ready to support you: a visual frame PDF for printing names of those who have been killed, and quarter-page flyers to distribute at your altar. Reach out to viviana@solidaritypledge.org and we will send everything you need — including a printed copy of these materials to a FedEx near you.
The simplest thing anyone can do: wear a flower, light a candle in the window tonight, and say a name out loud.
Every candle lit, every photo placed, every name spoken is a declaration that we see them, we remember them, and we are not done fighting — for our communities, and for democracy.
Please share this widely with your members and networks. The more voices saying their names together on November 2, the louder our refusal.
In solidarity, [NAME + ORGANIZATION]
